Martinsburg daily gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1887-1887, 1887-07-19
TUESDAY. JULY IS, 1857.
ARMY STORIES in ENGLAND.
Chat with = London Governanent Com
ira. t,r-NIasie over Goods.

Cn0t with London Governments Com
tra' t,r-Made Over Goods.
spent an evening with MI. William
Pope, one of the largest dealers In army
stores in England, and In the course Of
the interview he told me several curious
facts in connection with the business.
why, bless me, said the wealthy
dealer, there have been times when
could have clothed and equipped good
sized army on q days notice. once had
an old chapel fun OF rifles, warehouse
full .0f swords, q hundred thousand he'll
NETS, and as many coats, trousers and
boots. But the rifle business, like the dis
carded rifle, IS broken up now
Why IS thatr'
1T WAS after the Poenix park murders.
The great market for the rifles had for
many years been Ireland. The govern
ment became alarmed, and the order was
issued to break up all the rifles, and as the
order has never been rescinded suppose
they win 60 on breaking them up until
do0msday. At any rate there are no more
rifles to be had. =
But were not these rides very old fash
ioneds''
aOf course they were, but that was all
the better for the South African trade.
The natives liked the old flint gums with
the stocks painted red. Why, there Is an
establishment at Brandon, in Norfolk,
making flint locks to this day. It even
pays to take out the more modern locks
and substitute flint locks. These flint guns
and old swords are sent out in barrels
and exchanged for palm oil, which comes
back in the same barrels. Before the
Phoenix park murders ! employed 100
men cleaning up and repairing govern
nnent rifles, muskets and firearms Of all
sorts. ] have received as many as 20, 600
in q month. Now the British govern
ment employs men at 50 week to break
them all up."
.What else do you buy Of the British
and continental governments besides i'm
plements Of warfare?''
why, bless me. my young friend,
buy everything; tents, blankets, picks,
shovels, boots, gloves, CATERS, helmets,
saddles, harness and accouterments Of all
kinds. y
do you examine them before purchas-
ingSn
Don't examine one. It's what 7ou
Yankees call trading out Of sight and nm
seen. Yon pay down your money and
you find out what you've got when yov
U6Slu " ttoSUKt, dGCUkttlA3 ~ ettO NuAt4G.
employ 500 people at times In the various
departments Of my business. and i ysn
would only reduce your tariff could seen
employ q thousand. =
"What do you do with the old boots?'
well, I'm not so much in the old boot
line. There isn't much in that unless you
make a business Of 1t. have friend who
has factory employing 500 Of 600 men,
and he literally makes old boots into new.
He buys all the army, all the police, and
in fact all the old boots he can lay his
hands on. They are taken to pieces and
the leather cleaned and redressed, and q
new boot or shoe constructed out Of the
good pieces OF leather, and all sorts Of
smaller articles made ont Of the best part
Of the worn out pieces. He makes very
durable hob nailed boot, which is known
!, IN the trade and boaght by costers, farm
laborers and railway porters. This 4
called translating.'
isWhat becomes OF the uniformsi'
s.Most Of them go abroad. The oil skin
capes and cork helmets go to India, the
brass helmets to the Cape, and the tunic
and policemen's uniforms to South Africa.
You see, as trousers are dispensed with,
red Jackets are father drug, though the
natives do buy them, and lengthen them g
bit with white cotton cloth. The cast or
court suits worn by officers are rare things
to get hold Of. They are renovated and
sold, with q few peacocks' feathers thrown
In, to the chiefs. They are always in de-
mand, and bring good prices The pride
these natives take IN their uniforms Is
astonishing. - Robert r. Porter IN Inter
Ocean.